Planter



Jan, 9, 1923..

H. R. T'RAPHAGEN.

PLANTER.

FILED NOV. 21. I919.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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M NE Q A Jan, 9, 1923 H. H. TRAPHAGEN.

PLANTER. FILED NOV. 21, 1919.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

- o con 1* ll ntented lent li llillthii lliiillllitlt'lt' 1t. hllitllilt lrltli.

iti

lE-ltlllll GOMIJEADTY, 01'? lEZOUliihUlEtD, ILLINOIS, A CQRJFORATIUN 01E ILLINOIS.

Application filed November 21, 1919.

To all whom it wmy concern lflle it hnownthat l, lliannr ltd (llnAPi-nionn,

a citizen of the l nited titan-a; residing at ll'loch lforih in the county of ll innebago and r t /tats of lllii'mis have im'ented certain new and useilfnl improvements in Planters, o'l' Which the -l ollowin;r is a specification,

This invention relates in general to plantcrsr and has more particular reference to single-row planters ol the type adapted for plantiligl, cottorn although it is also suitable :lor planting corn and other grains, Which are planted in rows.

line ol the primary objects of my present invention is the provision in a planter of this character. ot mechanism whereby the speed of the semi-dropping mechanism may be varied to suit the requircineinis of different coinlitions of soil while the planter is in operation.

Another object is the provision. of speedchanging mechanism tor this purpose which can be constructed as a unit and so tested betoreheing incorporated in the structure oi J] themachine as a whole.

ii jl urther ohject to provide sin'iple, hut at the same time strong and durable apnaralins by which the arious speed clntnges may he made, and \rhirh by reason of its action and einbodil'nent in the machine itse l will add wits strength and rigidity.

further object of the invention is the provision of novel mechanisn': iif Oi" raising and lowering the tiirrow-in)ening apparatus and also the seed-mvering zLPPtLi'zLlillS and 'l'nrtherinore to provide independent tootoperating mechanism by whieh the si a-nl-cov ering apparatus may be raised. independently of the 1'3 rroW-oprming device for the purpose of relieving it from Weeds and other trash which are apt to collect thereon when the machine is in use.

.inother feature of the invention resides in the provision ot a novel constrmtioin whereby the seed-dropping mechanism is antonlaticzilly thrown out of operation when the tnrrmv-openihe device raised to inop- "i'e position. v a further object is the provision of novel n'nides for the vertically nuirable beam which carries the t1irrowopening device these guides being; constructed so as to provide for aigijnstnient to take up any lost ll'lOlllOll re sulting); from irregularities in the beam strucs tnrc or whichniay result from Wear.

@erial No. 339,665.

Uther ()l'ljGClLE-R and many of the attendant adi'ant k s of my invention will be readily apg in'eciated as the same becomes better nn dov 7 end by reference to thecl'iollowing de scription when considereijl in connection with the accompanying drawings.

.lleterring to the draWings:--

Figure l is a plan view oi a planter cinbodying my invention, the seed hopper beinn removed;

Fig. is a side elevation of the planter shown in Fig. 1; v

Fig. P) a horizontal sectional View showinn; the speed changing mechanism, this View being taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; i

Fig. at is a transverse sectional View on the line l--. l of Fig. 3;

lrig. 5 is 21, t 'ansverse sectional view on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

his. (3 is at detail. View, partially in section showing: the raising and lowering lower and the casting; upon which it is mounted, this View being taken on the line 6-6 oi Fig; l;

l ie. 'i' is a somewhat sin'iilar View but looking in the on msite direction from the line i'--i' oi? l ig. 1;

Fig. 8 is a detail View of one jnstable heain guide rollers; and

Fig. 9 is a transverse sectional through the roller shown in llig. 8.

lie'lt'erring now to the drawings more in detail, reterencc character ll ini'licatcs generally the main portion oil the frame structure of the machine which is in the shape oi? e yolce having its arch rearwardly disposed and its sides converged at their torward ends as indicated. .12 the extremities thereof being arranged in parallel relation on oppd site sides out the tongue or pole 1:3 to which they are securely bolted. .Stnother pair of straps indicated by referernre character lat bolted at their forward ends to the tongue extend rearwamlly from the tongue and have their rear ends attached to a casting; all third pair of straps 1.5 cminectcd at their forward ends by the bolt 16 to opposite side; of the tongue" upwardly zircheih the re end of each strap being); brought tinwnwardly and secured by a bolt lli' to a h s: 13 lorined on the chenggespecd mechanism carrying casting which will be later described. The arched straps 15 are connected ii'iterinediatc their ends by bolts 19 upon which the adjustable beam-guiding rollers are in nuited,

of the adview as will be later described, and these straps are laterally braced by brace-members 21, connected at their upper ends by one of the bolts 19 and bolted at their lower ends to the side members of the main frame yoke 11. By this construction a rigid and durable frame structure is provided to which the operating mechanisms of the machine are attached, as will be hereinafter explained.

To the left side of the frame yoke 11 looking forwardly toward the machine, there is rigidly secured by bolts, a bearing 22, and likewise to the right side of this frame yoke there is securely bolted another bearing 23 in alignment with the bearing 22, and the weight of the machine is carried by these bearings upon the main shaft 24, equipped at its ends with the ground wheels 25 and 26, which are pinned or otherwise non-rotatably secured to the shaft. The bearing casting 23 has also formed integrally therewith, a horizontally disposed arcuate web or plate 27, provided at spaced intervals with apertures 28 adapted to receive the holding pin 29 of a pivotally mounted speed-changing lever 81 pivoted at its forward end upon a pin 32 depending from the casting 23, as best illustrated in Fig. 6. A. coiled spring 83 surrounding the pin serves to prevent this lever from becoming disengaged from the sector plate 2. The casting 523 is furthermore formed, as shown in Fig. 6, to provide 'the upper half 34: of a bearing for a rock shaft 35, the lower half of the bearing consisting of a separate piece, secured by bolts or otherwise, to the upper portion 34. A hand lever 37 is fixed to the outer end of the rock shaft 35 and its inner end is formed to provide a crank arm 38 (F 1), the purpose of which will be later explained. A sector 39 notched to accommodate the latch of the hand lever in the usual manner is secured to the casting 23 as shown, and its forward portion is braced and strengthened by a member All extending laterally from the frame yoke 11 and bolted to the sector. This member 41 also serves as a step by which the operator may mount the machine, and a similar step 42 on the opposite side of the machine serves a similar purpose.

The furrow-opening apparatus comprises in the present instance, a plow d3 of the middlebreaker type and a shoe 4A following the plow and bifurcated at its rear end to accommodate said seed delivery chute, a lower portion 45 of which is carried by the shoe and held in position by a brace d, and the upper portion 4c? of which depends from the frame of machine beneath the hopper. The two portions 4-5 and -l-i' are adapted to telescope when the shoe is raised to inoperative position, as shown in Fig. The furrow-opening apparatus consisting of the plow and shoe just described, are both carried by a vertically disposed beam 48,

which extends upwardly between the arched straps 1.5 and is guided by the guide rollers mounted upon the bolts 12). A link 4L5) l and 7) is connected at its upper end to the beam db and at its lower end to the crank arm ll of the rock shaft 35, so that when this shaft is rocked the beam and. the lurrow-opening apparatus carried thereby, will be raised and lowered. In other words, when the hand lever is in the position shown in the various figures of the drawings, the cranl' ll will be positioned to hold the beam 48 in elevated position, as shown. But when the lever is swung forwardly about its axis, the beam l8 and the furrow-opening apparatus carried thereby, will be depressed into operative relation with the ground.

The adjustable guide rollers for the vertically movable beam are illustrated in detail in Figs. 8 and 9, from which it will be observed that upon the bolt it] connecting the arched straps 15, I have mounted a cylindrical member 51 in eccentric relation to the bolt by reason of the fact that the longitudinal opening through the member 51 is disposed eccentrically. Upon this member 51 is rotatably disposed a roller 52. with which the beam 4:3 conbn-ts. this roller as will be apparent from the drawings, being slightly shorter than the member 51 so that it will not he clumped against rotation be tween the arched straps 15 when the bolt It) tightened up. At one end the member 51 provided with a disk 53 iixedly secured thereto and projecting radially outside the perimeter of the roller 52 in jlk'lSlllOll to be grasped by the hand so that the member Ill may be rotated or adjusted into proper rela tion with respect to the beam 4-H. whereupon by tightening up the bolt If) the member bl is clamped in this adjusted position, while the roller 52 free to revolve thin-con. liy this construction l am enabled to adjust the guide rollers for the vertically movable beam So that the beam will be snugly held ai all times, these adjustable rollers permitting adjustment for inaeii'uracics in dimensions of the beam and also alfording provision for taking up lost motion rez uilting from wear.

The covering apjiaratns by which the wed deposited in the furrow formed by the plow 43 and shoe it are covered. is carried by a yoke-shaped frame 5i pivoted :if its forward end to the main frame yoke 11 on the bolls: which carry the step members ll and i2. and this frame is bent vertically as illusirahwl in Fig. 2, so that it may be raised to the required height and without interfering with the main frame ll. ft will be obwrwd that near its rear end the frame Ziiis equipped at each side with a SllUYtlt'lll'l'jvlllg standard 55 adjustably secured to the frame by chimps 56, and each standard carrying at its lower end a covering shovel 57 adapted to throw the earth inwardly over the planted semi.

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lib

Letetltfmh ll. secondary yore .1 frame 58 is secured at its forward end at 59 to the frame 5st, and near its rear end it is provided with a transverse shaft (31 uponwhich are mounted a pair of covering and presser Wheels which press down the earth on each side of the planted rovv. lln operation, the weight of the rear end of the frame eat is carried by these Wheels, and a pair of connecting links 63 between the rear end of the frame and the frame 58, serve to strengthen the construction and make it more rigid.

The itrame 54 carrying the seed-covering devices is automatically raised with the furroiv-o 'iening devices by means of a link 6-1: connected at its lower end with one side oi the tlrame 5a and having its upper end inserted through an eye (55 projecting laterally from the link 49, said upper end being equipped with an adjustable abutment or collar 66, so that when the link a9 is elevated this link (i l will elevate the frame 54-. to the position shown in 2. The extent of elevation may, oi? course, be varied by adjustment of the abutment collar 66.

.ln order that the covering apparatus may be raised independently of the furrow-opening; mechanism to relieve the cowering); shovels from trash which has a tendency to collect thereoiu have provided a separate iootoperated hitting mechanism consisting oi? a lever (3? pivoted on the casting 22 at do, the rear arm oi this lever being connected by link 69 with the frame 54:, asshown in l! 2. When the machine is in. operation,

the forward end of the lever (37 which is equipped with a. foot pedal 71 is disposed substantially in vertical position where it may be readily engaged by the left-toot: oi? the operator. Ply depressing the tor-ward end oi this lover ;he :t'raine 5a is lifted so as to clear the shovels o't trash, and upon release oi? the lever the parts will return to normal operative position by gravity. in order that this frame may be locked in elevated position so as to relieve some oft ti 3 strain on the hand lever 37 and associated parts, I have provided the frame with a link 72 adapted to be engaged over a hook 73 proiecting hiterally i l'OIH the :lrame 11 by which the weight oi? the trains 5d and the parts carried thereby may be supported as .sl iowii in Fig. 2.

The seed hopper indicated by reii'erence character 74;, is carried upon a yoke-shaped casting inilicated generally by reference character 77. disposed within the main frame 1]. and securely bolted thereto at one side, prettier-ably by means of the same bolts that secure the bearing casting 23 to the main "Frame. The seed hopper .is equipped with SGGtbLlK'OlJPlllgl' mechanism of any Well known or preferred construction adz'i jted to deliver seeds from the hopper into the opetu ing 76 formed in the casting To through 'LliOlll'lBll on opposed laces or its which they are deposited by the collapsible shoes 4L7 and at in the ground. lhe rate at which the seeds will be delivered from the hopper depends, OillCOttlSG, upon the speed at which the dropping mecl'ianisn'i is driven, and with a view to driving this dropping mechai'iism at any desired speed it have provided cluuigc-speed drive mechanism which will now be described.

lteiterring more particularly to 1., is and t, it will be observed that the casting which is mounted on the shaft 2% and so secured to the ilfi'ajuie ll oreviously described, si'ves as a proper ipport and also as a sort of housijh" tor the driiingr inenil'ier. 'llhe adjusting er which ll sheen previously desc i Jed is connected by a link 7? with a bifurcated lever 78 pivoted to the casting T5 at 79. The bi'lurcated ends of this lover are engaged in an annular groove til. tliorined in a collar d9, which is splinei'l to a sleeve ill-l surroiuulin gr the n'iain shaft 2a, which sleeve is rotatably disgosed upon this shaft. Upon this sleeve is rotatably mounted three gear uheclsllel kill and 8t; respectively, of diil'ercnt diameters, the gear wheel 86 having termed. inte t-ally 'tl'ieieivith a bevel gear til adapted to n'iesh with and driv i a go? which forms part oi? the seed-dro iiping n hanisin carried by the superposed hopper.

Upon a st-tioiiiary coiuiterslnil t mounted at one side oi the casting and held in posithui therein bye cotter pin 89 as shown in Fig. ii, there are rotatably mounted three gears 9i E52 and fill-l inesliinn respectively with the EH it? and till. as shown. 'lhcse three pears on the rouiiter-slniit are also connected bigg'ctheiby iiitereugagginc; clutch shoulders and SW its 9t and these gears so that they rota e in unison.

The sleeve 5%; is driven ron: the shaft "l through the intci'mcdiary ot a clutch co..- sisting ot a clutch member 96 termed upon one end of and preferably i at with the sleeve 88 and a me. myed to the shaft 24: bv alrey 98 ope: a slot in the member 9i. which permits movement (it this clutch member lonc itudinally ot' the shaft into and out oi en; Itlllfii'li with the clutch member 96. The clutch member ill" moves longitudiinilly to engagye or disengage the clutch by means oi" a lever Sit) (Fig. i) having one end eiigragnad in the groove lot formed. in the pe hery oi" the member 9?, said lever being; iiivoted to the casting i 102 and bei act ratedbyacontractilespr 103 which normally urges clutch into clutching eiiuan'enirii x. it rain mend er illiniounted upon one ido oi oil Thus, it will be seen that upon raising of the furrow-opening apparatus, the clutch which establishes driving connection between the shaft and seed-dropping mechanism is automatically disengaged.

Driving connection between the sleeve 83 and the gear 86 carrying the bevel driving gear 87 is established by means of a connecting element under the control of the s )eed-changing lever 81. This element consists of a spring key 105 secured at its outer end in the collar 82 and lying in the kerf 1.06 formed in the sleeve 83. intermediate its ends this key is formed to provide an outwardly projecting locking shoulder 10?, and each of the gears ea, 85 and 86 is provided with a series of sockets 108 adapted to receive this lockin shoulder, whereby the gear locked to the sleeve 83 to rotate therewith. The key 105 may be moved longitudinally to look any one of the gears 8%, 85 or 86 to the sleeve 83 by manipulation of the lever 81, either when the machine is runing or when it is idle, and if any socket 108 should not be in alignment with the key vhen it is moved longitudinally, the key will yield inwardly until such socket is brought into alignment with the key. whereupon the resiliency off the key Will ifOlCG its locking shoulder outwardly into the socket to lock the wheel to the sleeve.

Assuming for instance, that wheel 85 has been locked to the sleeve as shown in Fig. 3, power will now be transmitted to the seeddropping "bevel gear 87 through gears 92, 93 and 8G, and since gear 85 is larger than gear 92, it is obvious that the dropping mechanism will be driven at increased speed. Should a speed slower than the speed of rotation oi? the shaft 24- be desired, the lever 23 is moved to the right viewing Fig. 1, to lock the gear 84 to the sleeve 83, whereupon'the drive is established through gears 84, 91, through 92 to 93 and 86, gear 85 being permitted to rotate idly. (lear- 86 may be directly locked to th sleeve 83 so that it will rotate at the same speed as the shaft 24 by moving the locking key into engagement with this gear, in which event all of the other gears will rotate idly. It will be manifest that by this construction I have provided for three speed changes, so that seeddropping mechanism may be driven at any desired speed relatively L0 the speed of the main drive shaft 21 and that these speed changes may be readily and quickly effected by simply moving the speed-change lever 31 to the right or to the left to lock the requisite gear of the train to the shaft. The gears are maintained in position on the sleeve between the casting at one end and a pair of washers 109 at the other end which are held in position on the sleeve 83 by a locking ring 111.

It is believed that my invention, its mode of operation and many of its attendant advantages will be understood and appreciated from the foregoing without further description; and it should be mainiest that various details of construction illustrated and described are capable of wide inodilicatiim and variation without departure from the es sence of the invention as defined in the following claims; in which- I claim:

1. In a planter, the combination o l' a can rying' shaft, a plurality oil bearings therefor, a lever-locking sector carried by one of said bearings, a lever pivoted to said bearing and co-operating with said sector, a member mounted on said shaft between said bearings, a seed hopper carried by said member, driving mechanism between said shall and seed hopper arranged within said member, and means actuated by said lever for varying the ultimate driving speed oi"; said driving mechanism.

2. In a planter, the combination of a carrying shaft, a plurality of bearings therefor, one of said bearn'igs being provided with a lever locking sector, a speed-changing lever pivoted to said bearing and cooperating with said sector, a hopper arranged between said bearings, transmission mechanism beneath said hopper, means controlled by said lever ior varying the ultimate speed of said transmission mcchanisnn a clutch between said shaft and said transmission mechanism, a furrow-opening dc vice, and means for automatically disengaging said clutch upon lifting of said ilurrow-opening device.

3. In a planter, the combination of a carrying shaft, a bearing therefor, .liurrmvopening apparatus, seed delivery mechanism, a lever mounted on said bearing for raising and lowering said furrow-opening apparatus, a lever mounted on said bearing for controlling the speed of said seeddeli'very mechanism, seed-covering apparatus, a connection between said seed-covering apparatus and said furrow-opening apparatus, whereby the seed-covering apparatus is rendered inoperative upon lifting movement of said furrow-opening appaj ratus, and foot-actuated means for lil'tinr said secd-covering apparatus indepeiulently of said furrow-opening apparatus.

4. In a planter, the combination of a wheel-supported drive shaft, seed delivery mechanism, a unit assembly directly mounted on said shaft and supporting said seed delivery mechanism, said unit assembly including a frame part, a sleeve on said shaft and operatively associated with said frame part, gearing between said sleeve and said seed delivery mechanism for driving the latter; and means for establishing a driving connection between said shaft and sleeve.

eary/ea 5. In a planter, the combination of a carrying shaft, a pair of spaced bearings on the shaft, a main frame attached to and sup ported on said bearings, a casting mounted on the shaft intermediate said bearings, a sleeve loose on the shaft within said casting and equipped beyond one end thereof with a clutch face, a clutch member rotatable with and slidable lengthwise on the shaft intermediate said clutch face and the ad jacent bearing for connecting said sleeve to the shaft, seed delivery mechanism and a hopper mounted on the casting.

6. In a planter, the combination of a wheel-supported drive shaft, seed delivery mechanism and a hopper therefor, and a unit assembly adapted as such to be mounted on said shaft and comprising a frame structure for supporting said seed delivery mechanism and hopper, and mechanism adapted to be driven by said shaft for op erating said seed delivery mechanism.

7.111 a planter, the combination of a wheehsupported driving shaft, a sleeve loose on said shaft, means for establishing a driving connection between said sleeve and shaft, a frame part having a. bearing on said sleeve and thereby sustained in operative relation to said shaft, seed delivery mechanism mounted on said frame part, and mechanism adapted to be driven by said sleeve for o iierating said seed delivery mechanism, said frame part, sleeve, and driving mechanism constituting a unit assembly.

8. In a planter, the combination of a wheel-supported drive shaft, a main frame supported on said drive shaft and equipped.

with a furrow-opening device, seed delivery v mechanism, and a unit assembly o parts mounted on said shaft for supporting said seed delivery mechanism in operative relation to said furrow opener and. for establishing a driving connection between said shaft and seed delivery mechanism HARRY lit. TRAPl-lAGEhT. 

